Remus Lupin
Remus John Lupin or 'Professor Remus Lupin '''is a friend of James Potter, Sirius Black, Lily Potter and Peter Pettigrew; the son of Lyall Lupin and Hope Howell. In ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban as Professor Remus Lupin he teaches Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts. As a child he was bitten by Fenrir Greyback and became a Werewolf. He is also known as ''Moony ''- one of the Marauders who created the Marauder's Map. By far he is considered as the best teacher of his subject. From Story Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 5, The Dementor "Professor R. J. Lupin is the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts. On the train, he shares a carriage with Harry, Ron, Hermione, and their friends, although he spends much of the journey asleep. Lupin wakes after the train stops unexpectedly and the carriage is plunged into total darkness. He conjures a handful of flames, illuminating a Dementor as it appears in the doorway. Lupin sends the Dementor away and, as Harry wakes from his faint, Lupin gives him chocolate to help his recovery. Lupin leaves to talk to the train driver, and on his return announces that the Hogwarts Express will arrive at the school in ten minutes." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 7, The Boggart in the Wardrobe "For the third-year Gryffindors' first Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson, Professor Lupin leads the class along a deserted corridor and round a corner, where they encounter Peeves stuffing chewing gum into a keyhole. Lupin performs the 'Waddiwasi' spell, sending the gum shooting out of the keyhole, and straight down Peeves' left nostril. Lupin leads the class down a second corridor, and into the staff room. Beckoning the students towards the end of the room, Lupin stands next to a large wardrobe, which gives a sudden wobble and bangs off the wall. Lupin tells them that there is a Boggart in the wardrobe. He nominates Neville to be the first student to face the Boggart, asking him what he is most frightened of in the world. After Neville answers, Lupin explains that as the Boggart bursts out of the wardrobe, it will take the form of Professor Snape. He tells Neville to imagine his grandmother, and the clothes she wears. Combined with the 'Riddikulus' charm, Neville should be able to force the Boggart Snape into the hat, handbag and dress that his grandmother wears, causing the other students to laugh at it. As the Boggart is released, and the students take it in turn to face it, Lupin encourages them. When it is Harry's turn, however, Lupin runs in front of him. The Boggart turns into a silvery white orb, which hangs in the air." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 8, Flight of the Fat Lady "Lupin sees Harry walking past his office, and invites him in to see the Grindylow intended for the next Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson. When Harry asks why he was not allowed to confront the Boggart in the staff room, Lupin replies that he had thought it obvious: that the Boggart would take the form of Lord Voldemort. He is surprised when Harry says that he thought of Voldemort at first but then he remembered the Dementors. He suggests that what Harry fears most of all, therefore, is fear itself. When Professor Snape enters Lupin's office with a potion for him, he gulps it down and is unconcerned when Harry worries about Snape's intentions. Lupin hurries through the corridor towards the portrait of the Fat Lady, accompanied by Professors McGonagall and Snape." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 12, The Patronus "In his first lesson after Christmas, Lupin is reminded of his promise to help Harry defend himself against Dementors. He suggests that they meet on Thursday evening in the History of Magic classroom. Lupin arrives after Harry, carrying a large packing case with him. He tells Harry he found another Boggart, and has brought it to practise on. Lupin tells Harry he will be learning the Patronus Charm, a highly advanced spell. He teaches Harry the incantation, reminding him to concentrate on a happy memory, and is pleased with Harry as he practises. When Harry collapses after facing the Boggart, Lupin is worried, and pales when Harry mentions that he heard Voldemort again. After Harry's second attempt, he attempts to persuade Harry to stop the lesson, and regrets suggesting it in the first place. He opens the case for the third time reluctantly, but is pleased when Harry produces a cloudy patronus. He refuses to let Harry practise any further. Lupin is clearly uncomfortable when Harry questions him about Sirius Black, but does admit that they knew each other at Hogwarts." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 14, Snape's Grudge "Lupin is summoned by Professor Snape to his office, and promptly arrives in the fireplace using Floo powder. When he is shown the Marauder's Map, an odd, closed expression appears on his face. Lupin disagrees with Snape about the map being a Dark object, and tells Snape that it is probably a joke-shop product. After Ron corroborates this, Lupin tucks the map into his robes and escorts the boys out of Snape's office. He tells Harry and Ron that he knows what the map is, and that it was confiscated by Filch years ago. He is astounded that they haven't handed it in and tells Harry that he can't let him have it back. Lupin explains that the mapmakers would have thought it entertaining to lure students out of school, and admits that he has met them. He admonishes Harry for not taking Sirius Black seriously, and says that his reckless behaviour is a poor way to repay his parents' sacrifice." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 16, Professor Trelawney's Prediction "Lupin organises an unusual exam for the third-years, and creates a sort of obstacle course outside in the sun. He congratulates Harry at the end of his exam, and tells him that he gained full marks. He is startled when a screaming Hermione bursts out of the trunk with the Boggart in it." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 17, Cat, Rat and Dog "Lupin hurries up the stairs of the Shrieking Shack when he hears Hermione calling out, and bursts into the room at the top. He sees Ron lying on the floor, Hermione cowering and Harry standing over Black, and he promptly disarms Harry and Hermione. Lupin is oddly emotional as he asks Black where 'he' is, but is confused by Black's response. His eyes widen as he realises something the others cannot, and he asks Black whether 'they' switched, without telling anyone. When Black nods, Lupin walks over and embraces him like a brother. Lupin is remarkably calm after Hermione's accusations and he tells her that, for once, she is not completely right. He denies that he has been helping Black to get into the castle, and also that he wants Harry dead, but admits that he is a werewolf. He is impressed when he finds out how long Hermione has known, and that she noticed both that his 'illnesses' coincided with the full moon, and that the Boggart he faced turned into a moon. He tells the trio that the staff are aware he is a werewolf, but that Dumbledore had a hard time persuading some of them that Lupin was trustworthy. Lupin denies that he has been helping Black, and gives the trio back their wands in a bid to persuade them to listen. Lupin tells Harry that he knows how to operate the Marauder's Map because he is Moony, one of the makers of it. He explains how he was studying the Marauder's Map in his office as the events in the grounds occured and, as he did, he noticed an unusual name appear on the map, so unusual that he could hardly believe it. He tells the trio that he watched on the Map as Black pulled not one, but two people into the Whomping Willow. Lupin asks to see Scabbers, and appears to be holding his breath as he stares intently at the rat." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 18, Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs "Lupin restrains Black when he attempts to kill Scabbers, and insists that they explain things to Harry, Ron and Hermione before they harm the rat. He starts to tell his story, but breaks off when he hears a loud creak, and the bedroom door opens. Seeing no one there, Lupin continues his story. He explains to the trio that the Shrieking Shack was never haunted: the horrific sounds people used to hear were made by him. He tells them that the tunnel and the Shack were all built for his use, and the Whomping Willow planted to conceal the entrance, so that he had somewhere to be during his monthly transformations. Aside from his transformations, Lupin had a happy life at school. However, he had to hide his werewolf transformations from everyone, including his three closest friends. He tells the trio that Black, James Potter and Pettigrew eventually worked out the truth, and decided to try to become Animagi to help make his transformations bearable. As animals, his friends could accompany Lupin whilst he was a werewolf without being harmed, and under their influence he became less dangerous, his mind less wolfish. Lupin tells them that he and his friends were soon leaving the confines of the Shrieking Shack during the full moon, roaming the school grounds at night. During this time they discovered more about the grounds and the school than any other, and that was how they came to write the Marauder's Map. Lupin tells the trio that he sometimes felt guilty about betraying Dumbledore's trust, but that he always managed to forget his guilty conscience when they started to plan the next month's adventure. Lupin has been battling with himself all year, wondering whether to tell Dumbledore that Black is an Animagus and could easily get into the school unrecognised, but ultimately he couldn't bring himself to admit that he had betrayed the Headmaster when he was a student." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 19, The Servant of Lord Voldemort "When Snape arrives in the Shrieking Shack and starts making assumptions about Lupin's behaviour, Lupin tries to reason with him. He thinks Snape is a fool for letting a schoolboy grudge allow an innocent man go to Azkaban. He is attacked by Snape, and lies on the floor, bound by ropes. He is released by Sirius after Snape is knocked out. Lupin listens to Black's story, and slowly starts to understand what happened all those years ago. He is stunned when he sees Scabbers missing toe, and realises that Pettigrew must have cut his finger off himself to fool people. Lupin eventually insists that Ron hand Scabbers to him, assuring Ron that the spell won't harm Scabbers if he really is just a rat. He and Black cast the spell and watch as Scabbers transforms into Pettigrew. Lupin is deceptively pleasant to Pettigrew, but grows less friendly the more he questions his old friend. He is unimpressed by Peter's excuses, and doesn't believe his protestations of innocence. Lupin correctly deduces that Black didn't tell him about the change of Secret Keeper because he initially thought Lupin was the spy. Lupin tells Pettigrew that he should have realised if Voldemort didn't kill him, he and Sirius would. Lupin is staggered when Harry moves to shield Pettigrew, but reluctantly agrees to allow the Dementors to deal with him back at the school. He binds and gags Pettigrew, then goes to help splint Ron's leg. Lupin thinks that it would be better to revive Snape after they have returned to the school, and levitates his unconscious colleague using the incantation Mobilicorpus. Lupin tucks the Invisibility Cloak into his pocket for safe-keeping and volunteers to be one of the people chained to Pettigrew." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 20, The Dementors' Kiss "Lupin and Ron are shackled together with Pettigrew for the walk back to Hogwarts. Still shackled to Pettigrew and Ron, Lupin starts towards the castle, his wand trained sideways at Pettigrew's chest. Lupin comes to an abrupt stop as the clouds shift to reveal the full moon. He goes rigid and his limbs start to shake as he begins to transform into a werewolf. Lupin makes a terrible snarling noise as his head lengthens; his body follows, his shoulders hunch, hair begins to sprout on his face and hands, and his hands start to curl into clawed paws. He wrenches himself free of the manacle binding him once he is fully transformed, and is immediately attacked by Sirius in his Animagus form. Lupin is seized around the neck by Sirius, and is dragged away from Ron and Pettigrew. He and Sirius fight, clawing and ripping at each other until, with a howl, Lupin finally turns and flees into the Forbidden Forest." Discovered in Book 3, Chapter 22, Owl Post Again "Lupin hands in his resignation once news that he is a werewolf spreads through the school. He is packing his things up in his office when Harry arrives. He tells Harry that he thinks the loss of the Order of Merlin hit Snape hard, which is why he accidentally let Lupin's identity slip. He tells Harry that owls will soon start to arrive from anxious parents, who will be unwilling to let a werewolf teach their children, and that resigning is the best option. Lupin implies that Dumbledore told him about the events of the previous night, and tells Harry that he is proud of him for all he has learnt and the lives he saved. He asks Harry to tell him about his Patronus, knowing that it was the only thing that could have driven the Dementors away. Lupin tells Harry that James always transformed into stag, which was why they called him Prongs. He gives Harry back his Invisibility Cloak, and the Marauder's Map. Lupin feels less guilty about giving Harry the Map as he is no longer Harry's teacher, and knows that Harry, Ron and Hermione will find a use for it. He tells Harry that James would have been disappointed if his son had never found any of the castle's secret passageways. Lupin assures Dumbledore that there is no need to accompany him to the gates, and tells Harry he is sure they will meet again. He leaves the office, carrying his suitcase and the empty Grindylow tank." Discovered in Book 4, Chapter 14, The Unforgivable Curses "Lupin sent Professor Moody a letter about the now fourth-year Defence Against the Dark Arts students, telling him what they covered in lessons during their third year." New from J.K. Rowling Parents Remus Lupin was the only child of the wizard Lyall Lupin and his Muggle wife Hope Howell. Lyall Lupin was a very clever, rather shy young man who, by the time he was thirty, had become a world-renowned authority on Non-Human Spiritous Apparitions. These include poltergeists, Boggarts and other strange creatures that, while sometimes ghostlike in appearance and behaviour, have never been truly alive and remain something of a mystery even to the wizarding world. On an investigative trip into a dense Welsh forest in which a particularly vicious Boggart was supposed to be lurking, Lyall ran across his future wife. Hope Howell, a beautiful Muggle girl who worked in an insurance office in Cardiff, had taken an ill-advised walk through what she believed to be innocent woodland. Boggarts and poltergeists may be sensed by Muggles, and Hope, a particularly imaginative and sensitive person, had become convinced that something was watching her from between the dark trees. Eventually, her imagination became so overactive that the Boggart assumed a form: that of a large, evil-looking man, bearing down on her with a snarl and outstretched hands in the gloom. Hearing her scream, young Lyall came sprinting through the trees, causing the apparition to shrink into a field mushroom with one wave of his wand. The terrified Hope thought, in her confusion, that he had driven her would-be attacker away, and his first words to her - 'it's all right, it was only a Boggart' made no impression on her. Noticing how very beautiful she was, Lyall made the wise decision not to talk about Boggarts any more, but instead agreed that the man had been very big and scary, and that the only sensible thing to do was for him to accompany Hope home to protect her. The young couple fell in love, and not even Lyall's shamefaced admission, some months later, that Hope had never really been in danger, dented her enthusiasm for him. To Lyall's delight, Hope accepted his proposal of marriage and threw herself enthusiastically into preparations for the wedding, complete with a Boggart-topped cake. Lyall and Hope's first and only child, Remus John, was born after a year of marriage. A happy, healthy little boy, he showed early signs of magic and both parents imagined that he would follow in his father's footsteps, attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in due course. Bitten By the time that Remus was four years old, the amount of Dark magical activity across the country was increasing steadily. While few yet knew what lay behind the mounting attacks and sightings, Lord Voldemort's first ascent to power was in progress and Death Eaters were recruiting all kinds of Dark creatures to join them in their quest to overthrow the Ministry of Magic. The Ministry called in the services of authorities on Dark creatures - even those as minor as Boggarts and poltergeists - to help it understand and contain the threat. Lyall Lupin was among those asked to join the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, which he did gladly. It was here that Lyall came face-to-face with a werewolf called Fenrir Greyback, who had been brought in for questioning about the death of two Muggle children. The Werewolf Registry was badly maintained. Werewolves were so shunned by wizarding society that they generally avoided contact with other people; they lived in self-described 'packs' and did all they could to avoid being registered. Greyback, whom the Ministry did not know to be a werewolf, claimed to be nothing more than a Muggle tramp who was utterly amazed at finding himself in a room full of wizards, and horrified by the talk about the poor, dead children. Greyback's filthy clothing and lack of wand were sufficient to persuade two overworked and ignorant members of the questioning committee that he was telling the truth, but Lyall Lupin was not so easily fooled. He recognised certain telltale signs in Greyback's appearance and behaviour and told the committee that Greyback ought to be kept in detention until the next full moon, a mere twenty-four hours later. Greyback sat in silence while Lyall was laughed at by his fellow committee members ('Lyall, you just stick to Welsh Boggarts, that's what you're good at'). Lyall, generally a mild-mannered man, grew angry. He described werewolves as 'soulless, evil, deserving nothing but death'. The committee ordered Lyall out of the room, the head of the committee apologised to the Muggle tramp and Greyback was released. The wizard who escorted Greyback out of the inquiry was intending to place a Memory Charm upon him, so that he would forget having been inside the Ministry. Before he had a chance to do so, he was overpowered by Greyback and two accomplices who had been lurking at the entrance, and the three werewolves fled. Greyback lost no time in sharing with his friends how Lyall Lupin had just described them. Their revenge on the wizard who thought that werewolves deserved nothing but death would be swift and terrible. Shortly before Remus Lupin's fifth birthday, as he slept peacefully in his bed, Fenrir Greyback forced open the boy's window and attacked him. Lyall reached the bedroom in time to save his son's life, driving Greyback out of the house with a number of powerful curses. However, henceforth, Remus would be a full-fledged werewolf. Lyall Lupin never forgave himself for the words he had spoken in front of Greyback at the inquiry: 'soulless, evil, deserving nothing but death'. He had parroted what was the common view of werewolves in his community, but his son was what he had always been - loveable and clever - except for that terrible period at the full moon when he suffered an excruciating transformation and became a danger to everyone around him. For many years, Lyall kept the truth about the attack, including the identity of the attacker, from his son, fearing Remus's recriminations. Childhood Lyall did all he could to find a cure, but neither potions nor spells could help his son. From this time onwards, the family's lives were dominated by the need to hide Remus's condition. They uprooted themselves from village to town, leaving the instant that rumours of the boy's odd behaviour started. Fellow witches and wizards noticed how peaky Remus became as new moon approached, not to mention his monthly disappearances. Remus was not allowed to play with other children, in case he let slip the truth of his condition. In consequence, and in spite of his loving parents, he was a very lonely boy. While Remus was small, his containment during his transformation was not difficult; a locked room and plenty of silencing spells usually sufficed. However, as he grew, so did his wolfish self, and by the time he was ten years old, he was capable of pounding down doors and smashing windows. Ever more powerful spells were needed to contain him and both Hope and Lyall grew thin with worry and fear. They adored their son, but they knew that their community - already beset with fears at the mounting Dark activity around them - would not be lenient on an uncontrolled werewolf. The hopes that they had once had for their son seemed in ruins, and Lyall educated Remus at home, certain that he would never be able to set foot in school. Shortly before Remus's eleventh birthday, no less a person than Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, arrived uninvited on the Lupins' doorstep. Flustered and frightened, Lyall and Hope tried to block his entrance, but somehow, five minutes later, Dumbledore was sitting at the fireside, eating crumpets and playing Gobstones with Remus. Dumbledore explained to the Lupins that he knew what had happened to their son. Greyback had boasted of what he had done and Dumbledore had spies among Dark creatures. However, Dumbledore told the Lupins that he saw no reason why Remus should not come to school, and described the arrangements that he had made to give the boy a safe and secure place for his transformations. Due to the widespread prejudice around werewolves, Dumbledore agreed that for Remus's own sake his condition should not be broadcast. Once a month, he would leave for a secure and comfortable house in the village of Hogsmeade, guarded by many spells and reached only by an underground passage from the Hogwarts grounds, where he could transform in peace. Remus's excitement was beyond anything he had known before. It was the dream of his life to meet other children and have, for the first time, friends and playmates. School Sorted into Gryffindor house, Remus Lupin was swiftly befriended by two cheerful, confident and rebellious boys, James Potter and Sirius Black. They were attracted by Remus's quiet sense of humour and a kindness that they valued, even if they did not always possess it themselves. Remus, always the underdog's friend, was kind to short and rather slow Peter Pettigrew, a fellow Gryffindor, whom James and Sirius might not have thought worthy of their attention without Remus's persuasion. Soon, these four became inseparable. Remus functioned as the conscience of this group, but it was an occasionally faulty conscience. He did not approve of their relentless bullying of Severus Snape, but he loved James and Sirius so much, and was so grateful for their acceptance, that he did not always stand up to them as much as he knew he should. Inevitably, his three best friends soon became curious as to why Remus had to vanish once a month. Convinced by his lonely childhood that his friends would desert him if they knew that he was a werewolf, Remus made up ever more elaborate lies to account for his absences. James and Sirius guessed the truth in their second year. To Remus's astonished gratitude, they not only remained his friends but thought up an ingenious method of easing his monthly isolation. They also gave him a nickname that would follow him all through school: 'Moony'. Remus finished his school career as a Prefect. The Order of the Phoenix By the time the four friends left school, Lord Voldemort's ascendancy was almost complete. True resistance to him was concentrated in the underground organisation called the Order of the Phoenix, which all four young men joined. The death of James Potter, along with his wife Lily, at the hands of Lord Voldemort, was one of the most traumatic events of Remus's already troubled life. His friends meant even more to him than to other people, because he had long since accepted the fact that most people would treat him as untouchable, and that there could be no possibility of marrying and having children. Even worse, within twenty- four hours he had also lost his two other best friends. Remus was in the north of the country on Order of the Phoenix business when he heard the horrible news that one of them had murdered the other, and was now in Azkaban, a traitor to the Order and to Lily and James themselves. The downfall of Voldemort, such a source of jubilation to the rest of the wizarding community, marked the beginning of a long stretch of loneliness and unhappiness for Remus. He had lost his three close friends and, with the Order disbanded, his previous comrades returned to busy lives with families. His mother was now dead, and while Lyall, his father, was always delighted to see his son, Remus refused to endanger his father's peaceful existence by returning to live with him. Remus now lived a hand-to-mouth existence, taking jobs that were far below his level of ability, always knowing that he would have to leave them before his pattern of growing sick once a month at the full moon was noticed by his workmates. The Wolfsbane Potion One development in the wizarding community gave Remus hope: the discovery of the Wolfsbane Potion. While this did not prevent a werewolf losing his human form once a month, it restricted his transformation to that of an ordinary and sleepy wolf. It had always been Remus's worst fear that he would kill while out of his right mind. However, the Wolfsbane Potion was complex and the ingredients very expensive. Remus had no chance to sample it without admitting what he was and so he continued his lonely, itinerant existence. Return to Hogwarts Once again, Albus Dumbledore changed the course of Remus Lupin's life when he tracked him down to a tumbledown, semi-derelict cottage in Yorkshire. Delighted to see the Headmaster, Remus was amazed when Dumbledore offered him the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. He was only persuaded to accept when Dumbledore explained that there would be a limitless supply of Wolfsbane Potion, courtesy of the Potions master, Severus Snape. At Hogwarts, Remus revealed himself to be a gifted teacher, with a rare flair for his own subject and a profound understanding of his pupils. He was, as ever, particularly drawn to the underdog, and both Neville Longbottom and Harry Potter benefited from his wisdom and kindness. However, Remus's old flaw was at work. He had grave suspicions about one of his old friends, a known fugitive, but did not share them with anyone at Hogwarts. His desperate desire to belong and to be liked meant that he was neither as brave nor as honest as he ought to have been. An unfortunate combination of circumstances arose that resulted in Remus undergoing a true werewolf's transformation on the grounds of the school. Severus Snape's resentment, never abated by Remus's subsequent respectful politeness, made sure that it was widely known what the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher was. Remus felt obliged to resign and departed Hogwarts once more. Marriage As Lord Voldemort once again gained ascendancy, the old resistance regrouped and Remus found himself once more part of the Order of the Phoenix. This time, the group included an Auror who had been too young to belong to the Order during its first incarnation. Clever, brave and funny, pink-haired Nymphadora Tonks was a protégée of Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, the toughest and most grizzled Auror of them all. Remus, so often melancholy and lonely, was first amused, then impressed, then seriously smitten by the young witch. He had never fallen in love before. If it had happened in peacetime, Remus would have simply taken himself off to a new place and a new job, so that he did not have to endure the pain of watching Tonks fall in love with a handsome, young wizard in the Auror office, which was what he expected to happen. However, this was war; they were both needed in the Order of the Phoenix, and nobody knew what the next day would bring. Remus felt justified in remaining exactly where he was, keeping his feelings to himself but secretly rejoicing every time somebody paired him with Tonks on some overnight mission. It had never occurred to Remus that Tonks could return his feelings because he had become so used to considering himself unclean and unworthy. One night when they lay in hiding outside a known Death Eater's house, after a year of increasingly warm friendship, Tonks made an idle remark about one of their fellow Order members ('He's still handsome, isn't he, even after Azkaban?'). Before he could stop himself, Remus had replied bitterly that he supposed she had fallen for his old friend ('He always got the women.'). At this, Tonks became suddenly angry. 'You'd know perfectly well who I've fallen for, if you weren't too busy feeling sorry for yourself to notice.' Remus's immediate response was a happiness he had never experienced in his life, but this was extinguished almost at once by a sense of crushing duty. He had always known that he could not marry and run the risk of passing on his painful, shameful condition. He therefore pretended not to understand Tonks, which did not fool her at all. Wiser than Remus, she was sure that he loved her, but that he was refusing to admit it out of mistaken nobility. However, he avoided any further excursions with her, barely talked to her, and started volunteering for the most dangerous missions. Tonks became desperately unhappy, convinced not only that the man she loved would never willingly spend time with her again, but also that he might walk to his death rather than admit his feelings. Remus and Tonks both fought Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters in the Department of Mysteries, a battle that resulted in the public exposure of Voldemort's return. The loss of the last of his school friends during this battle did nothing to soften Remus's increasingly self-destructive attitude. Tonks could only watch in despair as he volunteered to spy for the Order, leaving to live among fellow werewolves to try to persuade them to Dumbledore's side. In doing this, he was exposing himself to the possible reprisals of the werewolf who had changed his life forever, Fenrir Greyback. Remus came face-to-face with both Greyback and Tonks at Hogwarts barely a year later, when the Order clashed with Death Eaters within the castle. During this battle, Remus lost yet another person he had loved: Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore had been adored by every member of the Order of the Phoenix, but to Remus, he had represented the sort of kindness, tolerance and understanding that he had received from nobody in the world outside his parents and his three best friends, and had been the only man ever to offer him a position within normal wizarding society. In the aftermath of the bloody fight, inspired by Fleur Delacour's protestation of enduring love for Bill Weasley, who had been savaged by Greyback, Tonks made a brave, public declaration of her feelings for Remus, who was forced to admit the strength of his love for her. In spite of continuing misgivings that he was acting selfishly, Remus married Tonks quietly in the north of Scotland, with witnesses taken from the local wizarding tavern. He continued to fear that the stigma attached to him would infect his wife and wished for no fanfare around their union; he swung constantly between elation that he was married to the woman of his dreams and terror of what he might have brought upon them both. Parenthood Within a few weeks of their marriage, Remus realised that Tonks was pregnant and every fear he had ever had surfaced. He was convinced that he had passed on his condition to an innocent child and that he had condemned Tonks to the same life as his mother, forever moving around, unable to settle, having to hide her increasingly violent child from sight. Full of remorse and self-recrimination, Remus fled, leaving the pregnant Tonks, seeking out Harry and offering to accompany him on whatever death-defying adventure awaited. To Remus's shock and displeasure, the seventeen-year-old Harry not only declined his offer but became angry and insulting. He told his ex-teacher that he was acting selfishly and irresponsibly. Remus responded with uncharacteristic violence and stormed out of the house, taking refuge in a corner of the Leaky Cauldron, where he sat drinking and fuming. However, after a few hours' reflection, Remus was forced to accept that his ex-pupil had just taught him a valuable lesson. James and Lily, Remus reflected, had stuck with Harry even unto their own deaths. His own parents, Lyall and Hope, had sacrificed their peace and security to keep the family together. Bitterly ashamed, Remus left the inn and returned to his wife, where he begged her forgiveness and assured her that, come what may, he would never leave her again. For the rest of Tonksâ€™s pregnancy, Remus eschewed missions for the Order of the Phoenix and made it his first priority to protect his wife and unborn child. The Lupins' son, Edward Remus ('Teddy'), was named for Remus's recently deceased father-in-law. To both parents' relief and delight, he showed no sign of lycanthropy when born, but inherited his mother's ability to change his appearance at will. On the night of Teddy's birth, Remus briefly left Tonks and his son in the charge of his mother-in-law, so that he could go and find Harry for the first time since their angry confrontation. Here, he asked Harry to be Teddy's godfather, feeling nothing but forgiveness and gratitude towards the person who had sent him home to the family that gave him his greatest happiness. Death Both Remus and Tonks returned to Hogwarts for the final battle against Voldemort, leaving their tiny son in the care of his grandmother. The couple knew that if Voldemort won this battle, their family was sure to be eliminated: both were notorious members of the Order of the Phoenix, Tonks was a marked woman in the eyes of her Death Eater aunt, Bellatrix Lestrange, and their son was the very antithesis of a pure-blood, having many Muggle relatives and a dash of werewolf. Having survived numerous encounters with Death Eaters and fought his way skillfully and bravely out of many tight corners, Remus Lupin met his end at the hands of Antonin Dolohov, one of the longest-serving, most devoted and sadistic of all Voldemort's Death Eaters. Remus was no longer in prime fighting condition when he rushed to join the fight. Months of inactivity, using mostly spells of concealment and protection, had blunted his duelling capabilities, and when he ran up against a dueller of Dolohov's skill, now battle-hardened after months of killing and maiming, his reactions were too slow. Remus Lupin was posthumously awarded the Order of Merlin, First Class, the first werewolf ever to be accorded this honour. The example of his life and death did much to lift the stigma on werewolves. He was never forgotten by anyone who knew him: a brave, kind man who did the best he could in very difficult circumstances and who helped many more than he ever realised. J.K. Rowling's thoughts Remus Lupin was one of my favourite characters in the entire Potter series. I made myself cry all over again while writing this entry, because I hated killing him. Lupin's condition of lycanthropy (being a werewolf) was a metaphor for those illnesses that carry a stigma, like HIV and AIDs. All kinds of superstitions seem to surround blood-borne conditions, probably due to taboos surrounding blood itself. The wizarding community is as prone to hysteria and prejudice as the Muggle one, and the character of Lupin gave me a chance to examine those attitudes. Remus's Patronus is never revealed in the Potter books, even though it is he who teaches Harry the difficult and unusual art of producing one. It is, in fact, a wolf - an ordinary wolf, not a werewolf. Wolves are family-orientated and non-aggressive, but Remus dislikes the form of his Patronus, which is a constant reminder of his affliction. Everything wolfish disgusts him, and he often produces a non-corporeal Patronus deliberately, especially when others are watching. See also *Remus Lupin on Harry Potter Wiki *Werewolves *Wolfsbane Potion Category:Characters Category:Gryffindor Category:Hogwarts Category:New from J. K. Rowling Category:Teachers Category:Marauders Category:Werewolves Category:The Lupin Family Category:The Order of the Phoenix